All posts for the month August, 2013

August 24, 2013
p. 1368 Haftarah Isaiah
This passage is connected to Deuteronomy: Moses challenge to the people for not keeping the Commandments. Isaiah tells them that God’s anger will abate. “Nations will walk toward your light,,,”
60:1 Armies are on the march – it is a time of global upheaval – all within a few hundred miles. God said “let there be light” which was the first act of creation. This new light gives a sense of starting all over again. The suggestion is that the Israelites have now returned to their land from Babylon. Note that the word “goyim” is here translated as “nation” which is a 19th C. concept. The word probably indicates “unbelievers.” Or non-Israelites.
60:4 Israel was a crossroads of ancient commerce. But there is a deeper connection suggested between good and goods; between moral and material. LL: Hasn’t this been a damaging concept throughout history – the idea that wealth indicates holiness? PG: It is true that there has been reductive logic applied to these connections. This is what Job dealt with – the notion that if you do good you will do well. Job reminds us that this axiom cannot be reversed. His comforters tell him that his terrible situation must be the result of his sin. But Job denies that he has sinned. The entire concept of sin denotes a common decision as to what sin is. Our thinking is dominated by Greek logic which eliminates the middle and makes the only outcome either/or. SF: The preponderance of Jewish wisdom – per Maimonides – is moving toward the middle. He is asking for a balance. PG: Maimonides appreciated Aristotle’s idea that to every right there are two wrong – the extremes. SF: Wealth need not be material – it could be the accumulation of virtue. LL: Strangely enough this theme of how people will react under stress is the theme of the wonderful comedy film “Trading Places” with Eddie Purphy. The wealthy Duke brothers place a $1 bet on the outcome. They are essentially playing the role of God and Satan in The Book of Job.
“I got plenty of nothing, and nothing is plenty for me.” Maimonides focused on the community and the focus of the community. Maimonides thought this could be achieved via a strong leader. AF: Commerce functions regardless of the intention of the actors to do good. LL: But corporations that also do good can do better. What about Paul Newman’s enterprises? Ben & Jerry use this notion to sell ice cream.
60:8 This is a description of the exile and return. This may also reference “to bring your children from afar” the lost tribes who were lost at the time of the Assyrian invasion.
60:11 LL: This is cheerleading and there is no suggestion of humility here. PG: That is true. It may be a wistful desire to return to the time of Solomon’s Temple. The exiles are standing in the middle of the ruins. AF: What did Prophets do for a living? Were they paid to sermonize? PG: Some of them were priests and supported as such. Amos was a successful landowner. We know little or nothing about Isaiah. This Haftarah is an amalgam of writings that have been assigned his name. There were professional prophets who made a living via donations if they were successful. Like Oracles or Fortune Tellers.

The Vassar Temple Men’s Club undertook two projects today, the first to re-finish the walkway leading up the building, and the second to completely renovate the religious-school office.

Working in two teams, the volunteers finished the walkway, and emptied and painted the religious-school office. The next step for that office is new carpeting, early this week, then an opportunity to re-imagine the layout of the office. If you have suggestions, leave them here.

Twenty-five years ago Hebrew education was turned on its head, because in 1988 the Board of Jewish Education of New York released the astonishing results of its city-wide survey of Hebrew education.

Researchers had scrutinized synagogue-based programs of every variety. Most were Reform and Conservative, while others fell into different categories of practice. Most met a few hours a week over 1-2 days, others more or less frequently. They used a wide range of textbooks.

But they all had something shocking in common: All of the students in the varied programs knew exactly the same amount of Hebrew! Or, as the report put it, there was “no correlation between correct pupil responses [and the] number of instructional hours per week.” Students who attended eight hours of Hebrew education per week didn’t know more Hebrew than those who attended just one.

This finding was so counter-intuitive, and so critical of the Hebrew programs that were in place, that many people at first simply refused to believe it.

In this regard I’m fortunate, because my position on the faculty of the School of Education at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion gave me the opportunity to observe dozens of Hebrew schools first hand, not just in New York but across North America (and even a few in Europe).

Not surprisingly, I saw exactly what the report described: Hebrew programs were failing.

Of course, I wasn’t the only one to notice. As I started running national seminars on Hebrew education, I learned that most Hebrew-school principals were equally aware of the ineffectiveness of their programs. And this is for sure: the parents and students knew that the Hebrew programs weren’t working.

But change comes slowly. The inertia of the status quo is hard to overcome. “But we’ve always done it that way” is a prevalent unspoken motto, along with “but it worked just fine back when….”

Still, the landscape of Hebrew education is finally changing, and not just because of the 1988 report. With over 50 years of solid research about how children learn languages, it’s becoming easier to identify the specific shortcomings of our traditional models and to create more streamlined and appropriate programs to take their place.

Building on half a century of data, research, experience, and expertise, we’ve designed a Hebrew program at Vassar Temple that’s exciting, efficient, effective, and modern.

By teaching the entire alphabet, along with the vowels, in 5th grade, we avoid the drudgery that in the past has accompanied Hebrew School. (Research has dispelled the myth that students do better the earlier they learn the alphabet.) Because the students learn everything so quickly, their progress serves as a source of pride and motivation.

In 6th grade we focus on a brand new skill: reading without vowels. Advanced eye-tracking experiments show that the brain automatically focuses only on the consonants in Hebrew. So unlike traditional models that are at odds with how the brain naturally functions, this approach meshes with a child’s innate ability.

Seventh grade is devoted, naturally, to bar/bat mitzvah preparation. The students apply what they’ve learned over the prior two years as they prepare for this milestone in their life. The pay-off is two-fold. Because the students use their skills, they feel proud of what they’ve learned. And because of what they’ve learned, bat/bat mitzvah preparation is less stressful and more fun.

We augment these classes, which take place on Wednesday afternoons from 4:30 to 6:00pm, with Hebrew instruction for everyone on Sunday mornings.

The 21st century is an exceptionally rewarding time to be Jewish in America. The combination of a vibrant Jewish community and newly understood ways of engaging each new generation holds the promise of an unparalleled golden age of Judaism, and we’re thrilled to take part in building it.